Adjustable rail support

ABSTRACT

A vertically adjustable insulating support for the third rail of an electrified transit system which includes an assembly of an insulator body with means at its top end for supporting a current conductor rail and at its bottom end for axially adjusting the overall height of the support to thereby vary the elevation of the rail as necessary. The rail supports of the invention eliminate the necessity for shimming and are adjustable to conform with deviations in elevation of the rail supporting ties or bed of the transit system. Provision is included for quickdetachable demounting of the rail from the support so that the latter may be adjusted to conform with tie elevation changes after the system has been in operation.

United States Patent [191 Spiringer 1 3,826,881 [451 July 30, 1974 1 ADJUSTABLE RAIL SUPPORT [75] Inventor: Arthur James Spiringer, Lynchburg,

[73] Assignee: H. K. Porter Company, Lynchburg,

[22] Filed: Jan. 5, 1973 121] Appl. No.: 321,138

Primary Examiner-M. Henson Wood, Jr. Assistant Examiner-D. W. Keen 5 7] ABSTRACT A vertically adjustable insulating support for the third rail of an electrified transit system which includes an assembly of an insulator body with means at its top end for supporting a current conductor rail and at its bottom end for axially adjusting the overall height of the support to thereby vary the elevation of the rail as necessary. The rail supports of the invention eliminate the necessity for shimming and are adjustable to conform with deviations in elevation of the rail supporting ties or bed of the transit system. Provision is included for quick-detachable demounting of the rail from the support so that the latter may be adjusted to conform with tie elevation changes after the system has been in operation.

5 Claims, 3 Drawing Figures 1 ADJUSTABLE RAIL SUPPORT This invention relates to insulated supports for current conductor rails of a transit system used to provide electrical power to movable work utilities and more particularly to an improved construction of a support which is axially adjustable to vary the height thereof to thereby support the rail at a desired elevation.

Among the principal objects of the present invention is the provision of an adjustable insulating rail support which is adapted to securely mount thereon a current conducting rail, such as the third rail of a transit system, in accurately alined operative relation to the running rail or rails of the system along which the work utility moves.

A further object is to provide a support of the abovementioned character having means for facilitating height adjustment of the support without necessitating .the use of shims; which permits of such adjustment to be made without disturbing the rail present in an existing installation; and which enables the supports spaced along the length of the conductor rail to be individually adjusted in height to compensate for point to point existing variations in elevation of the transit bed for proper and adequate support of the rail along its full length in conformity with elevation changes in the bed of the transit system.

Other objects and advantages of the present invention will appear more fully hereinafter, it being understood that the present invention consists substantially in the combination, construction, location and relative arrangement of parts as hereinafter described in detail, as shown in the accompanying drawings and as finally pointed out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings:

FIG. 1 is an elevational view illustrating support of a transit rail by rail supports constructed in accordance with the principles of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is an exploded view showing in perspective the several components of the rail support of the present invention; and

FIG. 3 is a vertical cross-sectional view of the rail support as taken along the line 3-3 of FIG. 1, showing in phantom the rail mounted upon the support.

Referring now more particularly to the drawings, it will be observed that the insulating supports of the present invention which carry the current-conducting rails, such as that designated 11, in an electrified, side collection transit system are disposed at suitable intervals along the length of each current-conducting rail for securement to the cross-ties or other structure which forms the bed of the main running rails on which rides the transit vehicle or other work utility.

Upon installation of the current-conducting rail, sometimes referred to as the third or hot rail of the transit system, it is required that it be accurately alined with respect to the running rails and even after its initial installation it sometimes becomes necessary, due to settling of the track bed or changes made in the elevation of the rails of an existing system, to re-align the currentconductor rails with the running rails so as to insure correct elevation of the third rail relatively to the running rails for continuously supplying current to the utility through current collectors carried thereby as the utility moves along the transit system. To this end, the rail supports of the present invention are of such con- 2 struction that they may be adjusted as necessary to vary the overall height thereof.

As most clearly appears in FIGS. 2 and 3, the rail supports each include a base plate 12 to which is centrally welded or otherwise rigidly secured an externally threaded upstanding post member 13 which may be of tubular or solid stock. Threaded upon this post member 13 is an internally threaded cylindrical body member 14 having its upper end preferably closed by an end plate I5 welded or otherwise rigidly secured in place, which body member 14, by virtue of its threaded engagement with the post member 13, is axially adjust able relatively to the latter to vary the height of the end plate 15 above the base plate 12.

Secured to the axially adjustable body member 14, as by a bolt 16 extending through a central aperture 17 in its end plate 15, is an insulator 18 of porcelain or other suitable electrical insulating material, the opposite ends of which are internally threaded to respectively receive said bolt 16 and a second axially alined bolt 19 for securing to the top of the insulator a rail mounting member 20. This rail mounting member 20 is in the form of a stamping, as best shown in FIG. 2, having an apertured channel-shaped central portion 21 and oppositely projecting co-planar flange portions 22-23 adapted to underlie the bottom or base 24 of a current conductor rail 11 of generally I-shaped crosssection as shown and thereby support the same, which rail may be in the form of a standard A.S.C.E. rail or one in which such rail is a component part to provide it with a base such as that designated 24.

The flange portion 22 of the rail mounting member 20 is reversely bent upon itself, as at 25, to provide a recess or seat 26 for receiving one side edge of the bottom 24 of the rail, while the opposite flange portion 23 of the mounting member is provided with a narrow, elongated aperture 27 for removably and non-rotatably receiving a rail securing clip 28 of angular shape having a stem 29 which projects downwardly through the aperture 27. This removable clip 28, when its stem 29 is inserted in the aperture 27, coacts with the flange portion 23 of the rail mounting member 20 to provide a seat for the opposite side edge of the rail bottom flange 24, and thereby secure the base flange of the rail in position against lateral shifting or skewing movement relatively to its underlying support, the clip being held in position as shown by a cotter pin 30 or the like inserted through a hole 31 provided therefor in the portion of the clip stem 29 which projects below the flange 23 of the rail support.

The rail insulating support 10 in its assembled form is mounted upon and secured to the rail supporting ties or bed of the transit system by bolts 31 extending through holes 32 in the base plate 12, or by any other suitable means for securing said plate in fixed position beneath the current conductor rail to be supported.

In order to elevate or lower the current conductor rail into properly aligned position relatively to the running rails of the transit system prior to securement of the rail upon its upport 10 by the retaining clip 28 and with the plate 12 fixed in position, it is merely necessary to rotate the upper insulator portion of the support relatively to the lower post portion thereof and thereby axially adjust the rail support to its desired overall height, after which upon orientation of the rail mounting member 20 into position for receiving the rail, the

latter may then be mounted upon the support and secured thereto by the retaining clip 28.

Alternatively, with the rail secured by the clip 28 in its mounted position upon the support 10, similar height adjustment may be effected simply by freeing the base plate 12 from its supporting bed and then rtating the lower post portion of the support relatively to the upper insulator portion thereof, after which the base plate 12 may be re-secured in position. If necessary,,the base plate 12 may be partially rotated to locate its bolt holes in best position for adequate bolting of the base plate to its underlying tie.

lt will be apparent that by means of the rail support of the present invention, the current conductor rails of a transit system may be readily and easily aligned in relation to the running rails of the system without requiring the use of shims or other expedients for adjusting the elevation of the rail to a desired height. Also, the axially adjustable rail supports permit easy and accurate adjustment of the rails to conform with variations in elevation of the rail supporting ties or bed of the transit system, which is of particular advantage where it becomes necessary from time to time to re-adjust the height of the rail supports due to settling of the track bed after the transit system has been in operation.

Having now described the present invention, it will be understood that modifications and variations thereof may be made from time to time without departing from the essential principles or real spirit of the invention and that accordingly it is intended to claim the same broadly as well as specifically as indicated by the appended claims.

What is claimed to be new and useful is:

1. An insulated third rail support comprising in combination a base member adapted to be fixedly secured to the bed of the transit system which includes said third rail, said base member having a vertically extending post member and an insulator assembly axially alined with said post member and carried thereby, said insulator assembly including an insulator body having respectively fixedly secured to its opposite ends an in ternally threaded post-engaging member integrally provided with a top end closure to which the bottom end I of said insulator body is rigidly secured,and a rail- 2. An insulated third rail support as defined in claim 1 wherein said rail-supporting member is in the form of a saddle having a flat bearing surface for the base flange of the supported rail and means at opposite sides thereof for embracing therebetween said base flange to thereby prevent lateral shifting of the rail relatively to the support and skewing of the support relatively to the rail.

3. An insulated third rail support as defined in claim 2 wherein said anti-shifting and anti-skewing means consists of a pair of substantially co-planar inwardly presenting elongated seats or recessesrespectively pro vided at opposite sides of said saddle for respectively receiving the opposite side edges of the rail base flange, one of said seats or recesses being formed by a reversely turned flange extending along one side edge of said saddle and the other of said seats or recesses being formed by an inwardly presenting flange of an angle member detachably secured to the opposite side portion of said saddle.

4. An insulated third rail support as defined in claim 3 wherein said angle member is provided with a depending stem part of rectangular cross-section adapted to be non-rotatably projected through a correspondingly shaped slot formed in said opposite side portion of the saddle and wherein means is provided for detachably retaining said angle member in rail-anchoring position.

5. An insulated third rail support as defined in claim 2 wherein said saddle for the rail is centrally depressed and apertured to accomodate beneath said rail bearing surface thereof a bolt for rigidly securing said saddle to the top end of said insulator body. 

1. An insulated third rail support comprising in combination a base member adapted to be fixedly secured to the bed of the transit system which includes said third rail, said base member having a vertically extending post member and an insulator assembly axially alined with said post member and carried thereby, said insulator assembly including an insulator body having respectively fixedly secured to its opposite ends an internally threaded post-engaging member integrally provided with a top end closure to which the bottom end of said insulator body is rigidly secured, and a rail-supporting member having a flat bearing surface for the base of the rail, said post member and said post-engaging member being respectively threadedly connected for axially adjusting the elevation of said insulator assembly relatively to said vertically extending post, and means for quick-detachably securing said rail-supporting member to the rail to be supported thereby.
 2. An insulated third rail support as defined in claim 1 wherein said rail-supporting member is in the form of a saddle having a flat bearing surface for the base flange of the supported rail and means at opposite sides thereof for embracing therebetween said base flange to thereby prevent lateral shifting of the rail relatively to the support and skewing of the support relatively to the rail.
 3. An insulated third rail support as defined in claim 2 wherein said anti-shifting and anti-skewing means consists of a pair of substantially co-planar inwardly presenting elongated seats or recesses respectively provided at opposite sides of said saddle for respectively receiving the opposite side edges of the rail base flange, one of said seats or recesses being formed by a reversely turned flange extending along one side edge of said saddle and the other of said seats or recesses being formed by an inwardly presenting flange of an angle member detachably secured to the opposite side portion of said saddle.
 4. An insulated third rail support as defined in claim 3 wherein said angle member is provided with a depending stem part of rectangular cross-section adapted to be non-rotatably projected through a correspondingly shaped slot formed in said opposite side portion of the saddLe and wherein means is provided for detachably retaining said angle member in rail-anchoring position.
 5. An insulated third rail support as defined in claim 2 wherein said saddle for the rail is centrally depressed and apertured to accomodate beneath said rail bearing surface thereof a bolt for rigidly securing said saddle to the top end of said insulator body. 